Christgau is arguably right on the first count; prog has always appeared to stretch backward in time, endeavouring to evoke things ancient and mystical. But to liken London-founded band King Crimson's 1969 debut In The Court Of The Crimson King to bodily waste seems a tad harsh, given that there's a whiff of crushed rose petals in the extended passages dedicated to quiet contemplation.
However, such is prog's lot. Love it or loathe it, few can say they don't have an opinion on its calculated attempts at reshaping rock music. And King Crimson certainly stretched the net wide, taking in jazz, gamelan, folk, electronic, classical, psychedelic and heavy rock influences as it morphed through various incarnations.
In The Court Of The Crimson King opens with a blistering, captivating and memorable favourite. With 21st Century Schizoid Man the band plays its strongest card, virtuosic musicianship, whipping through changing time signatures with breathless ease and cannily capturing a storm of alienation and madness.
Its fuzzed-out vocal has been sampled for Kanye West's Power and even Ozzy Osbourne has covered the song, no doubt in thrall to its bleak message.
Of the four remaining songs, none comes close to repeating the opener's heavy jazz-rock recipe. I Talk To The Wind is quaint, beautiful and drippy, all flutes, mellotron and gently pattering drums. Epitaph is a grander, moodier contemplation on death.
Moonchild, complete with its long and sparse instrumental jam, is the most flagrantly arty number. The closing title track makes no bones of its affected conjuring of a medieval dreamland.
While all this would likely turn most hippy-haters murderous, others will savour it as their one secret prog-rock indulgence.
